NEWS

House Foreign Affairs Committee

U.S. House of Representatives

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Chairman

For IMMEDIATE Release – February 16, 2012

Administration Delegation to Nicaragua “Legitimizes Ortega,” Ros-Lehtinen Charges

(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement on the visit to Managua by a senior-level delegation from the State Department.  Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:

“Sending a high-level delegation to Nicaragua to meet with Ortega regime officials is a confusing diplomatic overture which legitimizes a fundamentally illegitimate regime.

“The Obama Administration correctly did not send a delegation to Nicaragua for Daniel Ortega’s shameless presidential inauguration, an office which he was constitutionally barred from holding.  Since then, the decision to send this delegation and the proposal of the U.S. to increase foreign aid to Nicaragua is sending a much friendlier message to Ortega.   In wake of these concessions, Ortega has announced that he is dispatching his Foreign Minister to Iran, a state-sponsor of terrorism, to further strengthen Nicaragua’s alliance with rogue regimes.

“These misguided decisions are further examples of the Obama Administration’s pattern of making concessions to despots in the Western Hemisphere.

“Democracy in Nicaragua is under siege by Ortega and his cronies.  Instead of standing on the side of democracy and supporting the Nicaraguan constitution, President Obama has apparently decided to accept the Ortega regime, fundamentally undermining U.S. security priorities in the region. The United States must take a consistent and clear stand in favor of the democratic process and rule of law in Nicaragua.”

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